Her Mother's Face
by DrkVrtx
Summary: "She knows everything about me. I know next to nothing about her." Frustrated with their relationship, Wii Fit Trainer seeks to know more about Samus' past. But how will the bounty hunter react when a memory she did not wish to share is discovered?


**A/N: This is a reworking of the story _Effie_, posted a few months back. The overall story and the way the characters/relationship were written fell out of favour with me. Not sure if that'll ever be continued, so if it one day disappears you know why. Apologies to those who favourited/followed it. In the meantime...**

* * *

"Who is Ridley?"

The two royal women look across at each other, brows furrowed. Across the table, Effie glances between them both. Eventually they turn back to her. Peach's neatly clasped together hands fidget as she opens her mouth. Zelda's expression is one of unease.

"Well, Effie, you see…"

She waits, but the princess closes her mouth and looks down at her gloved fingers. Zelda speaks in her place.

"It's better for you to ask Samus. We're not really at liberty to say."

Effie sighs heavily. With a small shake of her head she turns her attention back to the plate in front of her. "Yet another secret," she says, pushing around her food without interest.

"Where did you hear that name?" Peach asks quietly, eyes soft on the woman.

"She mutters it in her sleep," she replies.

"Ask her," Zelda urges, putting a hand to her pale forearm. "She'll tell you."

Effie pokes at a mushroom and gives an empty smile.

* * *

She lies between the bounty hunter's powerful thighs, muscled flesh pressed to either side of her head. Effie relishes the taste upon her tongue, sweet and divine as she clamps her mouth over the woman's sex. Fingers tighten amongst her loose charcoal grey locks and a desperate moan escapes Samus' lips. Effie hears it and buries her tongue deeper, works harder, intoxicated by the scent of the woman's intimate flesh. Samus begs her not to stop, never to stop, tells her _right there_ as her hips buck and then passionately cries out.

"Come kiss me," she says afterward, legs weakly falling away as her chiselled body shudders.

Effie climbs up the woman's trunk, feeling taut, hot skin beneath her fingertips. She lingers and swirls her tongue around the edge of a small navel, then rises to tease the glistening valley between firm round breasts, softly breathing in the aroma of coital sweat. Samus' kiss is deep and grateful, and then her mouth dips and she laps up the juices coating Effie's chin. The woman enfolds her in her arms and they lie peaceably still together.

The smaller of the two, Effie curls herself naturally into Samus' warm body. Her head tucks in towards her chest and she sighs contentedly. Then she feels the tip of her nose nudge against something cool and metallic: the corner of a small square locket, strung to a length of black cord.

"Sam?" she murmurs.

"Mm."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," the woman languidly replies.

"Who is…?"

Effie trails off, presses herself against Samus as she swallows. She likes this, being held close and securely, feeling the intimate warmth of skin on skin. The moment she asks her question Samus will stiffen and turn away from her, tug the ruffled sheets over herself and give Effie nothing but her broad back and silence. It would not be the first time. Effie's getting sick and tired of it, of her innocent questions being rebutted so harshly. But she hates to lie cold and alone in their bed, hates waking up to the stony woman who pretends she isn't there.

"Who do you think will be turning up to the Mansion next?" she asks instead.

"Whoever it is, they probably won't be female," Samus answers with a muffled, lazy voice.

Effie chuckles lightly. She falls asleep to the sound of soft, slow breathing.

* * *

"Ridley…"

Effie doesn't know what else to do but watch her. Samus' face has grown tight, golden locks of hair strewn across her brow. Her skin is damp with sweat. Her lips curl as she mutters the name once more.

"_Ridley_…"

Her arms have slipped from around Effie's body. Her hands now clutch the silver locket at her neck. She can see the veins bulging beneath the woman's skin. She'll wake up in the morning with an imprint on her palm, and Effie will say nothing of it. She only needed to ask once for Samus to shut her out for days afterwards.

So all Effie does, lost, confused and frustrated, is gently push the locks of hair away from the woman's face and then hold Samus close. Her lips will eventually fall still and her muscles loosen, and in the meantime Effie will lie there, wondering in bitter silence.

* * *

"She never takes off that damn necklace," Effie complains, stretching across to touch her opposite hand to her right foot. "It goes with her to the shower and then comes with her to bed."

Zelda sits on a mat opposite her, outfitted in similarly grey pants and a comfortable lilac tank top. The Hyrulian princess matches her pose, legs spread to form a wide 'V' as she endeavours to lean over just as far. She isn't quite as flexible however, though her progress is moving along steadily.

"It means something to her," Zelda says with a lightly strained voice.

"Right. Of course it does."

Zelda relaxes and sits up straight, the hair she's fashioned into a long ponytail swaying at her back. Her eyes fall sympathetically on Effie.

Her gaze narrows. "I assume you know exactly what the thing is."

"I have known Samus for more a decade," the princess replies.

"And I'm her girlfriend," Effie says impatiently, straightening herself. "I've hid nothing from her. She knows _everything_ about me. I know next to nothing about _her_."

"Effie…"

She holds up a hand and shakes her head. "Just forget it," she says as she stretches over to the left. "Come on, other side."

Zelda quietly complies. Then as she leans across, bending at the waist, she speaks.

"It is much more than a simple locket."

Effie gives askance with her expression.

The Hyrulian woman says nothing more.

* * *

Samus intercepts her as she leaves the dining hall. Effie steps out of the noisy room filled with chatter and the clatter of plates and walks straight into the woman. The corridor outside the hall is empty and Samus, the taller woman at the least by a full head, takes Effie by the shoulders and leans down to capture her mouth. Effie moans softly, hands moving to Samus' waist as she reciprocates. The woman's practically naked to the touch in her skin tight jump suit.

It's been a long day and she hasn't seen Samus since morning, running back to back sessions with the Mansion's undeniably unfit lot. The tall, impeccably fit blonde passionately attached to her lips has clearly missed her just as much. And she smells fresh from the showers, perhaps having just concluded her own tailored workout. As she's pressed to the wall beside the tall doors of the dining hall, Effie lets her hands slide up to feel the toned strength of Samus' abdominal muscles.

The doors swinging open to the sound of a moustachioed plumber loudly humming sees them swiftly split apart. Mario wiggles his eyebrows at them as Effie coughs, pushing her palms down the front of her wrinkled top.

"On your way," Samus says pointedly when the small man's stride slows. "There's no show for you to see."

Mario looks quickly to both ends of the corridor before digging into his overalls. He produces a fat golden coin and his eyebrows start dancing. Samus has her plasma pistol revved up and pointed at his head in the next second. Effie chuckles as the man yelps and makes a run for it.

"Classy, Sam," she tells the woman.

Samus shrugs, holstering the weapon at her hip. "Works every time," she replied.

"I missed you too," Effie says, running a finger along her lower lip and smiling when Samus meets her eyes.

"I want to show you something," the bounty hunter tells her, taking her hand and drawing her away from the wall.

Effie's brow lifts at that. "Oh?"

"You're always asking what it's like to wear my suit," Samus explains, missing the slight sagging of Effie's shoulders. "It's calibrated to my organic signature so it would be pointless for you to put it on, but I created a simulation that's close enough to the fact for you to get a sense of what it's like."

"Interesting."

Samus glances at her as they walk down the corridor. "What?"

"Huh?"

"You don't sound all that excited."

Effie pulls her mouth into an apologetic smile. "Oh, no, I am. It's just been a long day. Putting Bowser through his paces took a lot out of me."

Samus laughs. "I can imagine."

Despite the thoughts running through her head, Effie really does smile when she steps into the bounty hunter's virtual boots.


End file.
